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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — in football
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. track — to keep track
  9. shower — rain
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. tear — to rip
  13. lean — to bend
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. lie — to recline
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. shower — to wash
  19. track — a song
  20. game — a match
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. game — wild animals
  23. lean — thin
  24. track — a path

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com